Let’s Innovate While Respecting Tradition: A Partnership with Grenada Red Cross Society
Audra Gill
MPH Candidate, Global Health Epidemiology
As the trip nears closer, I'm starting to get more and more excited about our trip
to Grenada! Our
course this first half of the semester, has allowed us to spend a great deal of time
learning about
Grenadian culture and the long-standing partnerships between the University and our
community partners. I appreciate that our University of Michigan / Grenada partnership
is one
that combats negative stereotypes surrounding short-term service-related trips as
a
long-standing, sustainable, and continuously improved upon experiential partnership
between
the University and several community partners. I am grateful to be a part of this
team and look
forward to the opportunity to build upon what other students have worked on previously
as well
as contribute my unique skill sets and experiences to the program.
Grenada Red Cross Society
During our time in Grenada, our group will be working specifically with Grenada Red
Cross
Society (GRCS) which is an organization that provides services near and dear to my
heart. As
someone with an interest in emergency management/disaster recovery, this opportunity
allows
me the chance to delve deeper into the infrastructure of another country and see how
the
agency operates in terms of serving their citizens. More specifically, GRCS has tasked
our
group with identifying opportunities for growth in the program’s engagement, communication,
and evaluation both externally and internally.
We had the opportunity to meet the President of GRCS last week, Samantha Dickson,
who was
incredibly welcoming to our team. She shared that she is really excited to let us
take initiative
and delve into the organization’s operations in however ways we deem appropriate.
Her
confidence in our ability to produce adequate recommendations, was comforting, but
adds an
added sense of pressure to ensure we live up to her expectations! When referencing
the
difficulties of revamping the program, she said “it can be challenging to innovate
while
respecting traditions, but that is what we must figure out how to do” - and this stuck
with me.
To innovate while respecting traditions - what a seemingly simple yet difficult task.
Here’s to hoping that this is something we can achieve.
Stay tuned for more updates!